The Lesson Was Mine 

By Naomi Ayebale 

I had an extended senior 6 vacation. For some reason I missed joining campus in August 2019 when I was supposed to. In November that year covid hit and all students were sent back home, some girls got pregnant and other children somehow did not go back to school when schools reopened and this is how I conclude I needed to talk especially to the girls about the importance of education. So, in waiting, I decided to make the best of my time by engaging my community. One thing I noticed was that these girls had big dreams just like I did, they were just different and maybe planned to achieve them not like everyone else knew how.  

My lesson then was, I was not there to teach them or maybe to build their dreams, this they already had maybe all they wanted was someone to listen and understand their perspective. Thus, the inspiration for this poem.  

I stood with my dream, my suitcase packed,
The train sped by-it never looked back.
But silence spoke where speed once led,
And purpose stirred in hope I fed
Not to lead, but to walk the track

I came to give, to teach, to show,
To lift the weak, to help them grow.
Yet in their eyes, I came to see,
They held their strength- it wasn’t mine
They knew their path; I had to slow.

Generous enough, they shared their story,
Wounds wrapped in wisdom,
Their words held truth, not search for glory.
They spoke with grace, unshaken and proud,
Their strength was quiet, their resilience loud
And shared their truth like fire through rain

So, hand in hand
We learned that change begins with love.
Not a Savior, proud and grand,
But a friend who’d understand.
True power grows when hearts unite.